But if the book is as good as critics are now saying it is, why didn’t it sell more copies before, especially since the rise of online publishing has supposedly made it easier than ever for first-time authors?

Given how difficult it is for first-time fiction authors, especially in a crowded genre like mystery, to find both an agent and publisher, it’s not clear “The Cuckoo’s Calling” would have made it off the slush piles.

a publishing contract is hardly a guarantee of critical or commercial success.

Mr. Entrekin cited “Matterhorn,” by first-time novelist Karl Marlantes, which he published in 2010. The author “worked on the book for over 20 years and couldn’t find a publisher,” Mr. Entrekin said. Then, as the book was about to be published in a tiny first edition, Mr. Entrekin got a copy from a buyer at Barnes & Noble, loved it, and bought out the first printing.

These days I think a writer can do much better finding readers on a smaller social network like RedRoom, SheWrites, or myWANA—sites where both readers and writers congregate and you can engage with people. (Goodreads can be good too, but they have a bully problem, and I find it incredibly hard to navigate.)

What are those authors doing in those precious first pages? In every book I looked at they were introducing me to a character so unique and compelling that I cared about what happened when the high stakes action came into play a few pages later. They opened not with a bang but with a voice—a choice well worth emulating.

Collaborations between writers and fans are nothing new, but a new wave of projects are revisiting the concept with modern technology

Perhaps the most radical example of this was the World Builder project launched in conjunction with Adam Christopher’s superhero noir novel, Empire State in 2011. The idea was to not just encourage fan art, but to give it the publisher’s seal of approval.

Mr. Mamet is taking advantage of a new service being offered by his literary agency, ICM Partners, as a way to assume more control over the way his book is promoted.

publishing is like Hollywood — nobody ever does the marketing they promise.

ICM, which will announce its new self-publishing service on Wednesday, is one of the biggest and most powerful agencies to offer the option. But others are doing the same as they seek to provide additional value to their writers while also extending their reach in the industry.

Trident Media Group

mostly for reissuing older titles, the backlist.

InkWell Management

she would not leave Harper completely because she loves her editor.

They treat it like a small business

the big publishers focused mostly on blockbuster books and fell short on other titles — by publishing too few copies, for instance, or limiting advertising to only a short period after a book was released.

If an author self-publishes, what, then, is the role of a literary agency?

The industry has long suffered the irony that effective publishing is most evident when invisible; it is only when standards are less than felicitous that we realise how well what we read is managed most of the time.

The copy editor, a traditionally marginalised figure, is now in strong demand.

Now, as authors meet their readers at literary festivals, run blogs or tweet, they know their readers well and are no longer solely reliant on their publishers to mediate relationships.

The role of the agent is also changing.

Now that so many self-publishing authors are finding the market themselves, agents need to find new ways to make their work pay. If agencies are multi-faceted (film, television, after-dinner speaking) they may be protected, but smaller agencies will struggle.

New writing patterns are developing too: team writing; ghost writing; software to assist the crafting.

if a writer is pursuing publication with the goal of making money, they're going to find themselves sorely disappointed.

hose who are pursuing publication for the money are probably better off getting a job at Walmart for a much steadier and reliable income.

In the modern publication industry, writers are shouldering HUGE responsibilities. Not only are authors working on novels (sometimes multiple books in a year), but they're also writing enovellas and eshort stories to help with marketing visibility.

ts flawed methodology, specifically its dependence on what’s known as last-click attribution, wherein the final interaction that led to a sale is given 100% credit for the conversion, ignoring the realities of multiple touchpoints and myriad potential influencers.

“online retail discovery” isn’t really a problem for readers.

It’s a problem for publishers.

Where publishers might have a shot is in narrow niches that are typically ignored because they don’t generate bestsellers

One of the first articles I published back when I was running Digital Book World was written by F+W Media’s CEO, David Nussbaum, wherein he explicitly made the bold claim himself: “Produce fewer, but better books.”

The publishers who have a direct relationship with their readers — not necessarily via direct sales, but via direct engagement — are the ones who will not simply survive the “digital shift,” but will thrive, being less prone to the whims of Amazon, Apple, Google, or whomever the next big tech player might be.

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Articles and websites of interest to people in the publishing industry with a focus on innovation, marketing, and news. Pubmission is new online submissions hub for writers and publishers. www.pubmission.com.